Well!!! What a great Saturday we had. We picked, grinned and sang, dawn to dusk. Sunday was a cold, windy, rainy day.

The Mainstage performers were fabulous. The Marketplace artists lined the square with handcrafted treasures, some even demonstrated how they were made. Luthiers Row featuried the most beautiful handmade musical instruments. Our new Moonlight Jam was enthusiastically welcomed. The Sunday Gospel Jam was wonderful. After a short break to rest up, let's do it again next year!!!

Bear on the Square, held in and around Dahlonega's Historic Public Square, is an authentic Appalachian Festival featuring bluegrass and old-time music, a juried Artists Market Place featuring traditional mountain crafts, storytelling, free music workshops and demonstrations, dance team performances, an old-time mountain dance, an open mic event, and more.

Musicians

For the five Wisconsinites that make up Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, in all began in 2010when they found themselves holding acoustic instruments at a party in a living room in the college town of Stevens Point, Wis.

While April Verch (pictured at right with band members) is perhaps best known for playing traditional fiddle styles from her native Ottawa Valley, Canada, her performances extend into old-time American and Appalachian styles and beyond, for a well-rounded tour-de-force of North Americana sounds.

The Howlin’ Brothers are a Nashville-based string band composed of Ian Craft, JT Huskey and Jared Green. Anchored in a bed of old-time blues and bluegrass, their upbeat shows are heavy with original and traditional music, featuring the sounds of slide banjo, harmonica and old-time fiddle.

Crooked Mile is a North Georgia-based traditional bluegrass band which is returning to Bear for the second consecutive year. Crooked Mile consists of four distinctive vocalists, and its instrumentation is banjo, fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and bass.